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Wednesday, March 14, 2012

All That Glitters


"Why I Am Leaving Goldman Sachs"

Wow!  Mr. Smith is a man of rare integrity and courage. He must have clearly understood that leaving such a high powered, highly compensated position and trashing your employer for its shortcomings on the way out the door, could have severe personal repercussions.  To do so in the New York Times makes these actions that much more remarkable.

The pervasive atmosphere of greed at Goldman Sachs cannot be a shocking revelation. From the vivid images of Michael Douglas in "Wall Street" to today, we have been reminded time and again that we, the public, are treated by those with the power as but another commodity. I am certain there will be a written rebuttal from many Goldman employees and I have no doubt that one or two may end up in your "Letters" section in the coming days. "Disgruntled former employee", "not reflective of our purpose and our goals", or something that reflects equally badly on Mr. Smith and his motives.
But, the truth is that the words of Mr. Smith cannot and should not be dismissed. He is voicing our unhappiness. He is pointing fingers and placing blame. He is one of them, and yet he is mad as hell and not willing to take it anymore. I thank Mr. Smith for his insight and his honesty and applaud him for his realization that all that glitters is not Gold(man).

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3 comments:

Bruce Egert said...

How do you know? Maybe this guy is a total whacko. Maybe he is the most honest and revealing man in the world. Maybe he just got done making so much money at Goldman Sachs that he can afford to make such bold comments. Maybe he is going to write a book. None of what he says in directly verifyable; all of what he says has the ring of truth. We simply don't know. Until we do, we can take what he says for what it is worth, which in my eyes is little until there is corroboration. If one or more colleagues steps up to back him up then his credibility will go up in my eyes. Until then, I keep an open mind.

Robert said...

I would be very surprised if any one else stepped forth to corroborate the allegations made by Mr. Smith. That is the whole point. There is an obvious disincentive to going public with your grievances against a company like Goldman Sachs.

We shall see how this plays out.

Anonymous said...

Goldman Under Fire Again: Op-Ed Is Talk of Wall Street
It was the latest blow for the storied Wall Street investment bank, which now draws comparisons to a "great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity."